Story - January 25, 2021 - Catholic Charities of Southern Missouri, Inc. seeks to rebuild homes and repair lives through its Purpose Home Repair and Plumbing social enterprise program. The primary initiatives of the program are to a) develop a home repair and construction social enterprise to help low-income, unemployed and underemployed people, with significant barriers to employment, gain marketable job…

Story - January 5, 2021 - The coronavirus has reshaped life in the United States in many ways, but in key respects it has affected Black, Native American and Latino individuals more than other racial or ethnic groups. People of color get sick and die of COVID-19 at rates higher than white individuals and higher than their share of the population,…

Story - October 27, 2020 - After more than 75 years helping form families through international adoption, Catholic Charities of Baltimore has closed its international adoption program. The agency cited changing circumstances within other countries and a “negative stance” toward international adoption from the U.S. government. Ellen Warnock, who has worked in the international adoption program for 36 years, called the…

Story - October 15, 2020 - Every week since March, an army of volunteers and Father Evelio Menjivar, pastor of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in the Washington suburb of Landover Hills, Maryland, gather in the parish’s parking lot to give away boxes of food to local families in need. As the pandemic’s effects caused by COVID-19 started to surface, the parish…

Story - September 10, 2020 - When Sister Norma Pimentel used to query the needs of asylum-seekers in a tent camp along the Rio Grande in this Mexican border city, they asked for supplies such as utensils and blankets. Now when she speaks with them, they voice fears for their safety and ask about an exit. “We’re moving to a more…

Story - July 30, 2020 - The Democratic-led House approved the HEROES Act in May. The Republican-led Senate introduced the HEALS Act July 27. Besides the competing acronyms, the two bills offer competing visions of what it will take to keep the staggering American economy from landing on the canvas during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. HEROES stands for Health and Economic…

Story - July 15, 2020 - Across the country, Catholic dioceses, parishes and other church-run entities say the federal emergency “bridge loans” they applied for and received have helped keep much-needed ministries functioning during this coronavirus pandemic and the economic downturn that has resulted. By some estimates, thousands of individual churches, schools, food pantries and other social service programs would have…

Story - July 7, 2020 - In an opinion piece in The Washington Post daily newspaper, Sister Norma Pimentel, known for her work with migrants on the U.S.-Mexico border near Brownsville, Texas, made a public plea July 6 to keep an eye on the plight of asylum-seekers during the coronavirus pandemic. She also called for an end to the Migrant Protection…

Story - July 6, 2020 - Tharmini Umakaran came to the United States in 2018. She left her homeland of Sri Lanka at the age of five, fleeing civil war. Thirteen years later, as the nation celebrates World Refugee Day, June 20, Umakaran is thankful to those who helped her and her parents along the way. This year’s theme, “Every Action…

Story - May 21, 2020 - The recent decision by the Department of Homeland Security to extend restrictions on nonessential crossings of the southern border due to the COVID-19 pandemic did not surprise Catholics who work with migrants in the U.S.-Mexico borderlands. They said the decision, which includes a freeze on asylum claims and the immediate expulsion of migrants, only deepened…

News - March 9, 2023 - Peter & Rachel Catholic Charities Archdiocese of Santa Fe, New Mexico Peter, a veteran, was disabled in a 2012 workplace accident. No longer employed, he moved to Tucson with a friend. Every place, including the VA, had limited housing resources. Then he met his love, Rachel. But rent was always just out of reach, even…

Story - April 14, 2020 - Social Distancing Can Impact Mental Health It’s a fact, the Coronavirus is affecting each of us in one way or another. Catholic Charities of Orange, Sullivan and Ulster recognizes that affect may be different for each person. It may be physically, mentally, financially, or some other impact that is resulting from social distancing and drastic…